Children require activities to pass time. Toys are used to stimulate the imagination and creativity of children while at the same time serving the purpose of helping a young mind evolve into a coherent, intelligent, and well-formed adult. One field of toys that can be purchased or gifted is construction sets. Construction sets are made from a plurality of pieces that can be assembled in a number of ways to generate different results.
Generally sold in a series of boxes, either in small quantity, large quantity, or even extension sets, a child will collect as many pieces as possible to help create larger and more elaborate creations. Each set as sold differs and the rarity and usefulness of each piece can differ. Amongst the most popular construction kits available on the market are rigid building blocks like those sold by the LEGO® Corporation. Other kits available center around a doll that can be dressed, housed, like the goods sold by the American Girl® Corporation. In the United States, there are multiple types of construction sets each designed with a specific purpose and a different playability.
One type of known construction sets is sold under the BENDAROOS® brand. This technology is protected under U.S. Pat. No. 5,916,006 (“Ganson”) and is shown as prior art at FIG. 10. These sets are made of connecting pieces made of rigid foam and tubes also made of foam with a wire metal insert that is capped at both end and once bent will remain in the deformed shape. Since this technology relies on foam having a density between 1.5 and 6 pounds per cubic foot, the foam bodies of these pieces is rather large. Because of the thickness of the foam, each piece can only be bent to a certain limit.
What is needed is a new method of manufacture and of production that relies on the soft and bendable technology of the BENDAROOS® but where each piece has greater flexibility, more malleability, incorporates greater design and aesthetic elements, to create smaller scale models and creations that mimic everyday goods and also can be worn as jewelry.